The Venture Capital industry has originated in the United States, and American firms have traditionally been the largest participants in venture deals, and the bulk of venture capital has been deployed in American companies. However, increasingly, Asian venture investment is growing, and both the number and size of Asian venture investments are expanding.
Venture Capital is as a tool for economic development in Asia. In China, with a less developed financial sector, venture capital plays an active role in providing capital to start-ups and small or medium sized companies (SMEs), which frequently do not qualify for bank loans.
Venture Capital firms invested $21.2 billion in 2,725 deals in the U.S. through the third quarter of 2011, according to the MoneyTree Report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association. For all of 2010, Venture capital firms invested $23.4 billion in 3,496 deals.